Cities. Gleaming high rise office blocks, centres of technology and industry, and trade hubs. But more importantly, home to millions of people worldwide. Cities are vital ecosystems, consisting of far more than the bricks and mortar that make the buildings. So why is it only recently that city design has begun to be about people?

The Global Open Data Initiative (GODI) is a coalition of civil society organisations sharing principles and resources to get the best value out of open data. Open data, at its simplest, is freely available government data that anyone can access, analyse and use. It has potential to be widely used by citizens and organisations to explore how

The city of Dubai has ambitious plans. It plans to transform itself into a truly smart city, and not just any old smart city, but the best in the world. About this time last year, it announced the formation of a committee to develop ‘Smart Dubai’, with a strategy involving six key pillars and 100

Smart cities hold out the lure of sustainability and innovative technological solutions to large, previously intractable problems. But such opportunities do not come cheaply. Some of them, such as smart lighting, can be funded from the savings made in changing technology. But other, larger projects represent much bigger risks, and it has proven hard to

“What counts is what is measured.” We’ve all heard this, and however much you may dislike the idea that only the things that can be measured are important, you have to admit that there is a certain amount of truth in the idea that people tend to focus more on areas that are being assessed

The UK government has made much of its new ‘verify’ site, part of the government as a platform approach. This site will allow UK citizens to verify their identity whenever they come into contact with any government department. It will be used for many purposes, ranging from tax returns to driving licences and vehicle excise duty.